What does success look like for next year?

[NativeCheesehead]

From what I understand, they also planned on having a good amount of the increase being foreign students whose governments or sponsers would pay full tuition. That hasn't panned out for both economic and political reasons.

(We debated this quite a bit if I recall. Not saying I agree or disagree, and not trying to relitigate that where we all end up retreating into partisan corners. That was the plan. Thus far, it hasn't worked).

[FieldGoodie05]

Where's our Loyola level commitment to facility building? No budget increase or ARC renos for years despite the endowment doing gangbusters? Shouldn't that be paying down the debt to where it's no longer a concern? We've waited patiently for decades to see athletics funded to a level commensurate with the value they bring to the university and now we're still waiting? When will it be? 2030? 2050? Will most of us even live to see it? It's time to make basketball a priority with our actions and not just our words.

How much of Loyola was post HL?  How much was donor?  How much as debt?

[VUGrad1314]

I'm going to level with you and say that these things are irrelevant to me because I'm impatient after waiting so long already but to my knowledge:

Mostly post HL and heavily donor focused.

I'm sorry I know the realities are what they are I'm just tired of losing and tired of waiting  and tired of seeing what looks like indifference or grudging tolerance from decision makers. I just believe we can be more than we are and wish more people that matter feel the same way.

[crusaderjoe]

Why does it seem like everybody but us figured out that you build the marketing machine before the shiny toys? You hook them in with basketball then build all the cool stuff they'll love and appreciate?

Who is the HL had this figured out?  I'd wager that MVC notoriety and dividends paid for much of the MVC dwellings.  Loyola was going to do this in the HL?

The Gentile Center was built in 1996.  Renovations began in 2011.  Loyola joined the MVC in 2013.  I'm sorry, what were you saying again?

[valpo95]

Back on the topic of the thread, I looked back at some historic conference records when Valpo moved from the Mid-Con to the Horizon League under Homer Drew:

9-9  in 2007-9
5-13  in 2008-9
10-8  in 2009-10

I remember that after the 08-09 year in particular there were many negative posts about the team, both from VU fans and from supporters of other HL teams. Some were saying that Valpo should have never left the Mid-Con, and couldn't compete with the higher competition of the HL.

Clearly, it took some time (and some better players), yet after those three mediocre years the team showed substantial improvement. Now, Valpo is in a much better and more competitive league in the MVC, as the performance top to bottom is solid.

Is Valpo better positioned today than at the end of 2009? Yes, as I think a 5-13 mark is unlikely. Barring major injuries or wholesale transfers, a 10-8 or 11-7 conference record is very achievable, with upside to be even better depending on some new additions.

[VUGrad1314]

Why does it seem like everybody but us figured out that you build the marketing machine before the shiny toys? You hook them in with basketball then build all the cool stuff they'll love and appreciate?

Who is the HL had this figured out?  I'd wager that MVC notoriety and dividends paid for much of the MVC dwellings.  Loyola was going to do this in the HL?

The Gentile Center was built in 1996.  Renovations began in 2011.  Loyola joined the MVC in 2013.  I'm sorry, what were you saying again?

So they renovated pre MVC and after 15 years


Yet here we sit post MVC after 35 years with nary a plan or timetable.


What else am I to conclude but that we intend to be a barnacle on the good ship MVC leeching off the success of other programs but contributing nothing of our own? The higher ups don't care and want all of the benefits for none of the work...

[FieldGoodie05]

Why does it seem like everybody but us figured out that you build the marketing machine before the shiny toys? You hook them in with basketball then build all the cool stuff they'll love and appreciate?

Who is the HL had this figured out?  I'd wager that MVC notoriety and dividends paid for much of the MVC dwellings.  Loyola was going to do this in the HL?

The Gentile Center was built in 1996.  Renovations began in 2011.  Loyola joined the MVC in 2013.  I'm sorry, what were you saying again?

Thanks for sharing, you misread my questions if snark was required on your part.  Tone is lost when conversations aren't had face-to-face.

The reason for my questions were because I didn't know.  All I know about Loyola is they had a big donation for the basketball practice facility.

I'd still be interested in knowing how it was funded.  That's the most germane aspect of the questions I've posed.  Thought maybe someone here might recall.

I'll hold off replying to you snarky-like in the hopes you weren't trying to punt me in the face. 🤷🏻‍♂️🤷🏻‍♂️🤷🏻‍♂️

[FieldGoodie05]

Where's our Loyola level commitment to facility building? No budget increase or ARC renos for years despite the endowment doing gangbusters? Shouldn't that be paying down the debt to where it's no longer a concern? We've waited patiently for decades to see athletics funded to a level commensurate with the value they bring to the university and now we're still waiting? When will it be? 2030? 2050? Will most of us even live to see it? It's time to make basketball a priority with our actions and not just our words.

How much of Loyola was post HL?  How much was donor?  How much as debt?

Appears fund raising campaign for 2012 renovation

https://www.luc.edu/studentcomplex/gentilearena/

[FieldGoodie05]

Where's our Loyola level commitment to facility building? No budget increase or ARC renos for years despite the endowment doing gangbusters? Shouldn't that be paying down the debt to where it's no longer a concern? We've waited patiently for decades to see athletics funded to a level commensurate with the value they bring to the university and now we're still waiting? When will it be? 2030? 2050? Will most of us even live to see it? It's time to make basketball a priority with our actions and not just our words.

How much of Loyola was post HL?  How much was donor?  How much as debt?

Appears fund raising campaign for 2012 renovation

https://www.luc.edu/studentcomplex/gentilearena/

Let me be clear now, who of those asking for immediate ARC renovation is going to be the lead donor?  It's easy to dream, and I admire the compassion but guys....it's all words until a lead donor steps up?  Can we agree on that at least?

[justducky]

What else am I to conclude but that we intend to be a barnacle on the good ship MVC

Great idea! The Valparaiso Barnacles---   It is accurate, politically correct and unique in the entire world of sports. What a recruiting pitch----Son---I want you to come to VU and be a Barnacle.  Will the board of directors have to approve our mascot name change?

[crusaderjoe]

Why does it seem like everybody but us figured out that you build the marketing machine before the shiny toys? You hook them in with basketball then build all the cool stuff they'll love and appreciate?

Who is the HL had this figured out?  I'd wager that MVC notoriety and dividends paid for much of the MVC dwellings.  Loyola was going to do this in the HL?

The Gentile Center was built in 1996.  Renovations began in 2011.  Loyola joined the MVC in 2013.  I'm sorry, what were you saying again?

Thanks for sharing, you misread my questions if snark was required on your part.  Tone is lost when conversations aren't had face-to-face.

The reason for my questions were because I didn't know.  All I know about Loyola is they had a big donation for the basketball practice facility.

I'd still be interested in knowing how it was funded.  That's the most germane aspect of the questions I've posed.  Thought maybe someone here might recall.

I'll hold off replying to you snarky-like in the hopes you weren't trying to punt me in the face. 🤷🏻‍♂️🤷🏻‍♂️🤷🏻‍♂️

Sorry, I was not meaning to be snarky.  I missed some comments above as I was posting my comment. I read your comment meaning "dividend" as notoriety from being a member of the MVC, and by extension, the Final Four run, and not necessarily in the monetary or funding sense.  Loyola was in the HL when both of these arena upgrades occurred so that could not have taken place. I guess I should have been more clearer on that point, as in what the word "dividend" meant.  Again, sorry for the confusion.

And as a quick aside, Loyola really needs to be commended for their arena upgrades.  Two major upgrades in 20 years...and yet we're still waiting for major arena upgrades to our venue as we speak.

[NativeCheesehead]

Honest question: how many former Valpo athletes on the board of directors?

[a3uge]

Loyola's arena upgrades happened in 2011. If arena upgrades are responsible for their final four run, what happened from 2011-2017?

[FieldGoodie05]

Honest question: how many former Valpo athletes on the board of directors?

Good question, I don't know the answer but it appears that only (1) was at Valpo during the last 25-years...Lisa Grace '98.

Is it safe to say the lack of youth and or being a student at VU during our best sports decades is a detriment here?

Just questions...

[oklahomamick]

Donors certainly help......I'm sure there are other avenues to upgrade the ARC that won't bring the university to it's knees. 

If division II Southern Indiana can have nice things, by God the Crusaders can too.

[VUGrad1314]

Loyola's arena upgrades happened in 2011. If arena upgrades are responsible for their final four run, what happened from 2011-2017?

That's fine but you CAN'T look at that arena or Brown Field  or the baseball field and think that people will want to come play here if we don't have a winning brand to sell them. We're in a serious conference with serious programs that gets multiple bids in multiple sports. If we want to be anything more than an also ran we need to do something fast. Either we need to start Winning or we need to at least make it look like we care about contending and winning or we'll get our lunch eaten. 

[FieldGoodie05]

Donors certainly help......I'm sure there are other avenues to upgrade the ARC that won't bring the university to it's knees. 

If division II Southern Indiana can have nice things, by God the Crusaders can too.

Next time I come to Tulsa-town I'll pickup your lead donor check buddy 😜😜😜

Think I owe you a hot tub that you left at my place from our college days, so that'll be a good start to your donation!

Still can't believe you wanted to put that on the roof of your rental above the tavern on Lincolnway.  Sooo glad that I asked my mechanical engineer roommate to talk you out of that.  Else you might have made the Torch paper for all the wrong reasons, haha

[vu72]

Shouldn't that be paying down the debt to where it's no longer a concern?

j

No.  The problem with the endowment and its recent good performance, is that the vast majority of the endowment funds are targeted at a specific objective.  So so and so contributes $2,000,000 to fund a scholarship for the business school.  The growth in those funds can not be used for anything else in the same way the $2,000,000 gift dedicated to basketball recruiting can't be use to pay down debt on the new Bio/Chem building.

[a3uge]

Loyola's arena upgrades happened in 2011. If arena upgrades are responsible for their final four run, what happened from 2011-2017?

That's fine but you CAN'T look at that arena or Brown Field  or the baseball field and think that people will want to come play here if we don't have a winning brand to sell them. We're in a serious conference with serious programs that gets multiple bids in multiple sports. If we want to be anything more than an also ran we need to do something fast. Either we need to start Winning or we need to at least make it look like we care about contending and winning or we'll get our lunch eaten.

There's a difference between Valpo's facilities hurting recruiting, and equating a final four run to a facility upgrade years ago, as in, if only Valpo had upgraded the ARC, they would have been the ones in the final four. People here had the same sentiment with Butler, who has been worse after recent renovations.

[VUGrad1314]

Facilities are an important part of the whole package. Butler is worse because they're playing Villanova Georgetown Seton Hall Marquette St John's Providence Xavier and Creighton twice a year. It's the competition not the facilities but they're not hurting for recruiting. There's a difference between trying and failing and not trying.

[VUGrad1314]

Our get hyped roster isn't anything to get excited about  according to one MVC fan. Thinks we'll be fighting to avoid the PIG. I sure hope not. I hope we'll be better than that.

[truth219]

What we need is the right people to hear "If you build it...he will come"

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G890A using Tapatalk

[vu72]

Our get hyped roster isn't anything to get excited about  according to one MVC fan. Thinks we'll be fighting to avoid the PIG. I sure hope not. I hope we'll be better than that.

HAHAHA!!  We beat the conference's NCAA representative and WE are the PIG? 

[NativeCheesehead]

To be fair most of the conference beat the NCAA rep.

[valpo84]

Honest question: how many former Valpo athletes on the board of directors?

Good question, I don't know the answer but it appears that only (1) was at Valpo during the last 25-years...Lisa Grace '98.

Is it safe to say the lack of youth and or being a student at VU during our best sports decades is a detriment here?

Just questions...

There are a few members on the current board who participated in intercollegiate athletics during their years at Valpo.  One is a retired athletics conference executive director.  Another played while in college and is the father of a former basketball player, and father-in-law of a former athlete.  Former Board members are Hall of Fame members. And, many Board members have given generously to the athletic department.  In addition, there is an athletics committee of the Board that is composed of varied experiences of marketing, business and athletics.  They are quite familiar with the current, recent past, and past history of athletics at VU and the current issues. 

Should there be a discussion about ARC renovations, absolutely.  Should there be discussions about a recreational facility for all students, absolutely. These issues and allocation of resources are not easy.  There are short-term and long-term goals about the University.  We on this Board are a subset of competing priorities and there are no easy answers, unless one of you know someone ready to drop $5-10 million on ARC renovations.  If you do, please pass those names to MLB or John Kuka.  I'll even forward their numbers or just send them a personal note on Twitter.  They'd love to hear from you.  Be proactive!  Volunteer for a committee that interests you at the University.  The alumni association and the various departments, including athletics, have committees. 

Finally, interesting that despite building Gentile Center and renovating it since 1996, Loyola has 1 NCAA appearance, while Valpo has 9, including dealing with ever-evolving conferences.  It doesn't mean you stay status quo, but we do have to do more with less, and it has been productive.  These 3 seasons have been disappointing, and year 4 is important to establish an upward trajectory.